An underground retail space will be developed by the Land Transit Authority (LTD) next to the new Marine Parade Singapore metro station on the Thomson-East Coast line.
With 12,370 sqm of gross floor area on a single level, the project is seen as a way of gaining more value from public infrastructure investment and optimising land productivity.
Provisional permission for the development was granted by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) in March, and Marine Parade station is scheduled for completion in 2023. The underground retail space will sit above part of the tunnel connecting the Marine Parade and Marine Terrace stations.
Having underground retail space next to MRT stations is not a new concept for Singapore, with such spaces developed in the Raffles Place and Dhoby Ghaut stations, as well as in the linkway between the two stations at the Bugis Interchange. But this is the first time for the concept to be introduced in a major way outside the city.
“The single-storey space takes advantage of the cut-and-cover construction of the tunnels to the east of the station along Marine Parade Road,” says an LTA spokesperson. Upon completion, the retail space will be handed over to the SLA, the custodian of state properties.
Group managing director Danny Yeo of real estate company Knight Frank says he does not expect existing malls nearby (Parkway Parade and One KM) to be significantly impacted by the retail space.
“It will cater more to MRT travellers, so there will be F&B outlets and takeaway stalls, convenience stores, maybe foot reflexology, nail bars, a place one could pick up simple cosmetics, a wellness centre.”
TEL will have 31 stations and be completed in stages between 2019 and 2024. The East Coast stretch will comprise nine stations, to be completed in two stages.
